My Mother's Laptop(2008)

I started watching this about a month ago with the intention of later coming back and viewing it in its entirety. I never got around to doing that. I will probably forget about it again after posting this entry, so my only hope for a rewatch is if it gets released on DVD(assuming it hasn't already and I just don't know about it). Anyway...

I saw only the first fifteen minutes, and it felt like half of those minutes were spent on the prolonged shot of Suresh Gopi's eyes in the rearview mirror. Then there were the relentless...jump shots? of Suresh and Padmapriya hugging on the beach. And then the empty house with Suresh just standing, staring, standing, staring, and Padmapriya smiling, smiling, smiling. And the ocean, which I guess represented the mother's womb, or something. Oh, and I must mention one of the opening scenes where Suresh and Padmapriya are in a grave yard, with Suresh typing on his laptop while Padmapriya places flowers on the graves. Fun times.

Scarily enough, I found Suresh quite appealing. His bulky frame and bearded face reminded me of Mohanlal. I wasn't wild about that ponytail, however. It, too, reminded me of Mohanlal, but not in a good way. (Cue flashback to Mo's hairstyle in Rock N Roll.) Padmapriya was lovely, although her incessant perkiness kinda got on my nerves. But I suppose her sunny demeanor was meant to be the yang to Suresh's glum-faced yin. Or maybe I'm reading too much into this. I dunno. **shrug**

The scene I most want to watch is the one "where [Suresh] hugs a container holding his mother's uterus for biopsy, all the while muttering, 'My first home'"(source). I find that description both endearing and darkly humorous, mainly because it sounds like something I would do. **shifts eyes**

In spite of the slow pace and repetition, I actually liked what little I saw. At the time, however, I wasn't mentally prepared for the absence of fights and songs, so I had to rectify that by watching Attagasam. **smile** But now I'm ready to give it a second look. I just have to remember to do that.

Chattakkari(1974)

Seeing yesteryear actress Lakshmi in Chintakayala Ravi reminded me of this film. I wish I had been able to watch it when it was available online. I became interested in it after learning that the 2006 Kannada movie Julie was one of the three remakes of this. (The Hindi Julie and the Telugu Miss Julie Prema Katha were the other two, with Lakshmi reprising her role in both.) Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be commercially available on even VCD :(

The "Julie, I Love You" song from this movie used to be on YouTube, but has since been removed. I managed to find these songs, however: "Mantha Sameeranil Ozhuki", "Narayanaya Nama", "Yuvakkale Yuvathikale".

I know that Sridevi plays Lakshmi's kid sister in the Hindi version, and the Lakshmi-Sridevi combo should be enough to convince me to get it, but I'd rather watch the original first. I might break down and buy Julie, though, if I feel like I'll be retirement age before Chattakkari gets released on VCD or DVD.

Short takes, pt. 7.

I haven't been feeling inspired to post a "real" entry, so here's yet another list:

Last night, I watched: Paandu(starring Sneha and Jagapathi Babu), as well the 1980 version of Billa with Rajnikanth and Sripriya. For me, the highlight of the latter film was watching Helen dance in a outfit similar to the one Sridevi wore in Kalakaar. Overall, I thought it was pretty good, but I think I prefer the remake(which is rare, because it's usually the other way around).

The night before, I watched: Julie, the 2006 Kannada remake with Ramya/Divya Spandana and Dino Morea. I liked the antiquated feel in the first half, but hated it in the second half. I wish I had known about and watched the Malayalam original, Chattakari, before it got pulled, especially since it doesn't appear to be available on even VCD.

Last week, I obsessively watched: Ghajini and Billa. With regards to the first flick, even though Nayantara doesn't look her best, and her character is annoying as hell, I still found her appealing. I think it's because of the first couple of minutes of the "X Pichi Y Pichi" song(I have the dubbed Telugu version 'cause it was cheaper).

They were under $5, so I bought them: Nee Thodu Kavali(Charmi's Telugu debut), Ammai Bagundi(because of Meera Jasmine).

I was going to buy: the 2-in-1 DVD of Chakraviyugam solely because of Daisy Bopanna, but I didn't. Maybe next time. Same for the Telugu version of Happy Days.

Posts that are still brewing in my head: Sridevi, Mungaru Male, Kallori, Heartbeats. Hopefully, they'll all see the light of day sometime within the next couple of months.

Short takes, pt. 6.

Another day, another boring list. I'll post a real entry eventually.

I'm watching: Sachein(2005)

Before that, I watched a little of: Sorry...Enakku Kalyanam Ayiduchi(2006) and Gharshana(2004). I got the former because of Linda Arsenio's item number. I think she's a sketchball but at the same time, I kinda like her.

Last night, I watched: Unnale Unnale(2007)

Earlier, I tried to watch: Kireedam(2007) and Jalsa(2008), but neither movie held my interest. I might give Kireedam another chance, though.

I want to watch: Mungaru Male(2006), but I'm hesitant to tear off the plastic wrap because I don't know if it's a gift or if it was mailed to me by accident. I might end up opening it, anyway. (ETA: I'm glad I didn't open it, because it was sent to me by mistake. I will mail it to its rightful owner either tomorrow or on Monday. I was hoping it was a "thank you, please keep spending money" for my continued patronage. I guess not. Ah, well.

ETA2: Because I'm a liar(see below re: Heartbeats), I went ahead and ordered it, along with Kallori(I saw a pic of Tamanna/Tamannaah that made me a believer). I'll blame it on my unsatisfied curiosity. If I had never gotten that movie by mistake, I probably never would've considered buying it(and that's another lie, because I HAD been considering it, but I'll pretend otherwise).)

I thought about buying: Manasantha(2002), the dubbed Telugu version of Manasellam, 'cause it's really cheap, but I'm not a fan of dubs, and I've decided that the recently ordered Heartbeats(2007) should be my last DVD purchase for at least a month.

Short takes, pt. 4.

A very boring list because I'm feeling too lazy to type an actual entry.

I'm watching: Manmathan

Yesterday, I watched: Billa, Dreamz

In the near or distant future, I might post about: Manasu Palike Mouna Raagam, Sattam, Tik...Tik...Tik, Thai Illamal Naan Illai

I just recently ordered: Arjun, Nandhanam, Perumazhakalam

I changed my mind about ordering: Naa Alludu, Bus Conductor

I think I'll believe the bad reviews and refrain from watching: Villu (ETA: I lied. I had to see for myself how bad it is. I'm almost a half-hour in and all I can think is, "This feels like a parody of a Vijay movie." Not even the presence of Nayantara can save this. So far, Kuruvi and Azhagiya Tamil Magan look like cinematic masterpieces in comparison.

ETA2: Vadivelu mistaken for "an African chimpanzee"? If I didn't know any better, I'd swear that this part of the script was penned by members of the KKK. Why am I still watching this shit? I doubt it will get any better.)

Last night, I had a dream about: Abhiyum Naanum(and I haven't even watched it!)

I've been thinking about: Vaaranam Aayiram. I want to see it mostly for Simran and Divya Spandanna. And I sorta wanna check out Surya's six-pack abs, too ;)

Short takes, pt. 3.

Yavanika(1982) - I found it online and am trying to watch it now, but I'd really like to go to bed at a decent hour tonight, so I will save it for later. I think my dad would like this because he used to be involved in the theatre when he was younger.

Kuruvi(2008) - Typical Vijay fare. I liked it, but prefer the second half mainly because Vivek was thankfully absent. Trisha looked really good. I read a couple of reviews that stated she looked aged and plump, but she appeared fine to me. **shrug** I guess I have low standards--ha, ha.

Ghajini(2005) - Watched it yesterday because it's been a while since I last viewed it. My introduction to Nayantara. I thought she was annoying as hell, but found her cute and sexy enough to check out some of her other films. Clean-cut Surya was nice, but the crazy-eyed, tattooed version was much hotter. Asin was adorable, maybe a little too adorable, but perhaps she was directed to act that way.

Gharshana(2005) - Another "it's been a while, so I watched it again today". I think I like this slightly better than Kaaka Kaaka, but I'm not sure why. I thought Surya and Jyothika made a better pair and had more chemistry, but for some reason, I'm drawn to Venky-Asin.

Kedi(2006) - Ileana's first and only Tamil film. I have the 2-in-1 DVD because at the time, anytamil didn't have the Ayngaran version in stock. I checked again the other day and didn't see "out of stock" beside it, so maybe it's available? Ileana looked good, as did Tamanna, or however she spells her name these days. Part of me wants to be a Tamanna fan, because she's extremely easy on the eyes, and appears to be a decent actress, but I just can't make myself go ga-ga for her the way I do for Ileana.

Short takes.

Or, "When I Can't Think of Enough Words to Type a Full-Fledged Entry".

Zeher(2005) - I think I'm the only person who doesn't hate this movie. I honestly liked it more than its Hollywood "inspiration", Out of Time.

Kadal Azhivathillai(2002) - Prakash Raj strikes again, this time as Simbu's overly paranoid father. However, last night, as I watched him in Pokiri, I felt something approaching warm fuzzies, probably because it's been a while since I've watched a movie that he's in.

Yogi(2007) - I prefer the Kannada original. Also, I like Prabhas better in stills than on film. When I see him in pics, I'm like, "Mmmmm...", but when I see him in action, I'm less than impressed.

Dishyum(2006) I like this movie but I don't love it. I'm not sure why.

Takkari(2007) - Nitin doesn't do anything for me. The Tamil original, Thiruvilayadal Aarambam, wasn't exactly a masterpiece, but I prefer the pairing of Dhanush and Shriya Saran to Nitin and Sada(who I thought looked sexy, although a tad sleazy(nothing wrong with that) in a couple of songs).

Black Cat(2007) - I could've done without the shots of a bare-chested Suresh Gopi, but overall, I was able to cope. Meena looked a tad aged, but still pretty. (Which reminds me, I need to inquire about that Dreams DVD that doesn't look like it will ever be in stock again.)

Naan Adimai Illai(1986) - This is the movie that solidified my love for the 'Devi. A couple of my favorite lines are "I am going-talking, you are going, going, going!", and "This is a decent home and not a bar!"

Classmates(2006)

I knew whodunnit the second that person appeared onscreen. The other individual was a red herring. And when I heard the words "barely hanging on", I correctly guessed that A) Sukumaran(Prithviraj) would survive and B) the ending would be a happy one. I wish Suku had been found dead, and that the movie had ended on a somber note. I don't like forced happy endings; they feel like a cheat. **scowl**

But despite the predictable and too-neatly-resolved conclusion, I liked the movie. I was hesitant to watch it at first because of all the positive buzz surrounding it. I usually end up feeling disappointed by or very "meh" about such films. While Classmates isn't great, it's good, and I can see why it was so well-received. Plus, I bought it at a discount, which made it even better, because while I enjoyed it, I'm not sure I would want to pay full price for it. (Yeah, I'm cheap.)

In Kana Kanden, I admired Prithviraj's acting but was underwhelmed by his looks. I didn't think he was ugly, I just didn't feel he was as good-looking as some reviewers claimed. However, in Classmates, I found him quite handsome. I don't know if it was because I was seeing him in his--for lack of a better term--"natural element"(i.e. Malayalam movies), or if, like Vijay and Mahesh Babu, his physical attributes simply took a while to grow on me. **shrug** Regardless of the reason, I now want to check out some of his other movies like Chocolate, Anandabhadram, and Avan Chandiyude Makan.

I remember Narain from Ore Kadal. He's a good actor. I might have to give Anjathe or Chithiram Pesuthadi a look-see.

From the "You Remind Me Of..." files:

A bearded Prithviraj = Kamal Hassan in Varumaiyin Niram Sivappu

Kavya Madhavan at certain angles = Asin, particularly when sporting braided pigtails

Radhika in some shots = Mallika Sherawat, mostly in the eyes, which I find chuckle-worthy because Radhika's character wore traditional Islamic dress, and Mallika, aside from her burqa wearing stint at a Mumbai airport, isn't exactly known for covering up :)

I wonder how the Telugu remake compares. I sorta want to see it because of Sada.

Rock N Roll(2007)

Or, "Things I Think About Just Before I Have To Get Up".

I tried to watch this about a year ago. For some reason, I thought it would be good--or rather, I hoped it would be good since Lakshmi Rai was in it. I like her, even though I've never seen any of her films. Rock N Roll would've been the first, but I gave up after a few minutes. As soon as I saw Mohanlal's ponytail, the whole movie went downhill for me. (There's just something about a middle-aged man sporting a ponytail that triggers my "Ugh!" reflex.) But now I'm thinking I should give it a second chance. Just ignore the ponytail and wait for Lakshmi to appear onscreen. Maybe I'll do that--if it's still online, that is.

ETA: I ordered it, along with Black Cat. I hope I don't regret my purchases. **wry smile** I was desperate to spend money, and it's taking forever for the Ayngaran version of Kuruvi to be in stock. Plus, I "need" more fodder for this blog, hahahaha.

ETA2: I don't regret either of my purchases. They were both watchable, although right now, I'm leaning toward Black Cat as being the more entertaining of the two. Maybe I will elaborate further on each film when/if I can come up with something semi-coherent.

Kadhaparayumbol(2007)

Remade in Tamil as Kuselan, and in Hindi as Billo Barber.

I watched about forty minutes before directing my attention elsewhere. I have a feeling it might be another Rathri Mazha in the sense that on the first viewing, I'm not totally into it, but after seeing it multiple times I grow to love it.

I'm still not sure I want to pay $15 for the DVD. I'm afraid that shortly after I order it, it will be marked down to like, $7.99.

I'll have to come back to this later.

Aayiram Kannukal(1986)

I wish I could curl up in bed and watch this. I wonder if anytamil has it in stock.

Was the plot--Shobhana dreams about murders before they happen--lifted from Eyes of Laura Mars?

Shobhana is gorgeous. These days, whenever I see her name, I'm reminded of how she was supposedly one of the four heroines in the now-shelved Marmayogi. (Another reminder: Dance Like A Man - the DVD is available from Nehaflix. If it were $8 less, I'd buy it.)

Mammootty looks nearly the same now as he did back in the eighties.

Madanolsavam(1978)

Rich-boy-loves-poor-girl-who-later-dies-of-a-terminal-illness. This film, like Prem Geet and Khwahish, appears to have been "inspired by" Love Story. It was a bit overly melodramatic for even me, and I wish I could've taken an axe to the comedy scenes(I'm not really a fan of comedy tracks, or comedy in general, unless it has a dark or sarcastic slant to it), but aside from those minus points, I liked it. This would be the perfect movie to watch while lounging in bed, but it doesn't appear to be commercially available--in or to the U.S., that is--on either DVD or VCD.

Zarina Wahab is a dead ringer for Kangana Ranaut, which I find ironic(is that the right word?) considering that Kangana allegedly had an affair with Zarina's husband, Aditya Pancholi. She's also the only actress who I didn't think looked ridiculous wearing pigtails and hair bows. Normally, I hate that style on grown women because to me, it often looks a tad pornish.

The songs are melodious. "Sandhye Kannerithenthe" is my favorite, and I swear there's an English song that sounds similar to "Ee Malarkanyakal", but I can't recall the name. Maybe I'm just imagining things.

Oh, and another thing I wanted to take an axe to: the numerous bike riding shots. I wanted someone to steal that bike so that I wouldn't have to look at it anymore. I seriously think it had almost as much screen time as the two leads.

I liked how color coordinated Kamal and Zarina were at the end. He wore a white shirt and white pants, she was in a white hospital gown, covered with a white sheet, and resting her head against a white pillowcase.

Chanthupottu(2005)

Oh hai, defective DVD! Froze at the 56:04 mark. Should I order another one? Part of me is afraid that the replacement copy will be just as bad, or worse(i.e. it won't play at all).

I found Dileep even more appealing as a transvestite. Some of his mannerisms immediately brought to mind Johnny Lever's character in Anjaam(the only movie in which I thought he was funny, BTW). Acting-wise, I thought he did a good job, and he and Gopika made a lovely couple. (Yeah, I have an obsession with couples.) Dileep's gender bending made their relationship especially erotic.

Too bad I couldn't view this movie in its entirety. Bhavana, my latest "Actress to Check Out", is in it as well, and I would've liked to have seen her. Bah!

Just when I was having a good run of luck with non-defective DVDs, Sainikudu and this one had to fuck up on me. **sigh**

Rathri Mazha(2008)

I'm going to have to come back to this, because it was a little too heavy for me to try to watch in one sitting. But here are my thoughts so far:

Vineeth and Meera Jasmine looked like members of the Blue Man Group in the opening scenes. I kept thinking, "Blue blobs, blue blobs, their faces look like BLUE BLOBS!" I don't know if the picture quality of the DVD is THAT bad, or if they were lit that way on purpose.

Talking to the camera: DO NOT LIKE!

Was there a bit of meta(?) involved when Meera's character, whose name was also Meera, says that Mammootty is her favorite actor? I immediately thought of how they worked together in Ore Kadal and wondered if she was making a winking reference to that.

"Dowry is hidden in the term 'appropriate family background'"--haha I like that!

Vineeth looks better in stills than he does on film.

This might take a while to grow on me.

ETA: I had it on repeat the other night, and I think some of it may have sunk in while I was sleeping because when I re-watched it yesterday, I definitely appreciated it more than I did on my first viewing.

I still think Vineeth looks better in pics, but when he wore glasses, I found him quite handsome. I wish there had been more scenes of him dancing. From what was shown, he appears to be a very beautiful and sensual dancer.

Chess(2006)

I bought this along with Billa. It was only $7.99 and the plot sounded interesting so I thought, "What the hell. I'll get it."

It was utterly predictable and lacking in edge-of-your-seat suspense, thanks to the "tell, don't show" style of narration, but I managed to enjoy it, anyway, mainly because I found Dileep strangely appealing. There was just something about him that made me go "Hmmmm...." Which is weird because, about a month ago, when I watched parts of Vinodayathra, I thought he looked dorky and too old for the character he was playing. But now, I want to try to rewatch it to see if I have a change of heart.

Bhavana, the heroine, was cute, and I liked her in the few scenes she was in. I will have to check out more of her movies.

The "Chandham" song is really beautiful, and the way it's picturised brings to mind certain scenes from Salangai Oli.

I just remembered that a while back, I watched another one of Dileep's movies, Kochi Rajavu. I saw only the first hour or so, but IIRC, it was a not-bad viewing experience. I think I'll give it another look-see and if I like it enough, I might consider buying it.

Vayanadan Thampan(1978)

Malayalam movie starring Kamal Hassan that was dubbed into Hindi and re-released as Pyasa Shaitan in the 80s in an attempt to, I assume, capitalize on Kamal's post-Ek Duje Ke Liye popularity. I saw a trailer for Pyasa Shaitan sometime last year and noticed that, ahem, "extra"(read: naughty) scenes had been added to spice up the flick. They looked so out-of-place, and it was obvious that they were filmed during a different decade.

I started watching this a few minutes ago, but(aside: Wow! Kamal looks great in that shot! I wish I could cap it)I think I'm going to save it for later viewing because my head hurts(damn rainy weather!), and it's difficult to concentrate.

Boeing Boeing(1985)

I'm giving it a quick look-see online as I type this.

Garam Masala is the Hindi remake of this film. I briefly considered buying it a while back, just for John Abraham('cause he's easy on the eyes) and Daisy Bopanna(ditto), but I'm not an Akshay Kumar fan, so...

Back to the Malayalam version: Mohanlal looks so cute! Right now, I have a ridiculous fondness(for lack of a better term) for the scene where Mohanlal, with only a towel wrapped around his waist, attempts to prepare chicken masala and manipulates the raw chicken according to the instructions he hears on a TV exercise program.

Oh, and there's Mohanlal again, this time by candlelight and making "fuck me" eyes at an actress whose name I do not know.

He looks like such an adorable teddy bear that I want to check out more of his early-to-mid 80s flicks. Unfortunately, this one isn't available from anytamil. I guess the VCD is sold only in India, which is a shame because this appears to be worth buying.

Or maybe not, because I'm totally not feeling the outfit Mohanlal is wearing in this song sequence. I want to say it's "cowboy inspired" because of the hat(with a peacock feather!) and the vest, and then there's the neck scarf and shades, and all of it at once is too much for my eyes to handle. The song is nice, though.

At least I can watch it online and decide if it's something I might want to buy in the future, if/when it becomes available for sale in the U.S.

Ore Kadal(2007)

This movie is responsible for my current Mammootty crush. I bought it on a whim from bhavanidvd. It was only $7.99, and after a quick skim of the plot summary I thought, "Why not?"

I'm glad I got it because otherwise, I never would've been introduced to the drunken, disheveled hotness that was Mammootty's character. **wry grin** But that's not the only reason I liked it. I thought it was well-acted, engrossing, and erotic. (That sentence sounds weird, but I'll leave it be.) I wish I could give a more detailed explanation of why I enjoyed this film so much, but my thoughts are scattered and it's hard for me to translate what I'm thinking to my computer screen. Maybe one day I'll take notes while I'm watching it for the umpteenth time and attempt to come up with something that sounds semi-intelligent.